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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — for paper
  4. stock — goods
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. ground — the earth
  7. stock — shares
  8. capital — money
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. ground — a position
  14. capital — a city
  15. vault — a safe
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. clip — to cut
  18. vault — an arched ceiling

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com